True Love is Forever
by Iellwen Arwen
Summary: Raven Derrick was Eric Draven's best friend. She also happened to be a first hand witness to his murder. Returning form a suicide, she now must seek revenge and declare some otherwise unspoken feelings. . . .
1. Chapter 1

1Oct. 30 Devil's Night

Raven Derrick was walking home from work when it happened. As usual, she was taking the long way home to give her an excuse to walk past her best friend Eric Draven's loft. She had been hopelessly in love with him for as long as she had known him, but, alas, he was with someone else. Shelly Webster. The woman was perfect. She was beautiful, funny, caring, everything Raven wished she was. When she found herself standing in the middle of the sidewalk, gazing longingly at the window, she smacked herself and set her mind on getting home. "You can't keep going around like this," she said to herself. "Eric's getting married tomorrow night and there's no way in hell he's leaving Shelly for you." She hadn't even taken a step before she saw Eric fall from the six-story window and land with a sickening crunch on the sidewalk in front of her. "ERIC!" she screamed, falling to her knees and pulling his head into her lap. She knew he was dead, there's no way anyone could survive a fall like that, but she held him to her like there was some way she could save him. At this point, Raven was sobbing, holding Eric's head to her chest and running her fingers through his hair. She looked into his cold, lifeless eyes and whispered, "I love you." Then she heard sirens in the distance. A crowd had started to gather around Raven and Eric, and she was pulled to her feet and away from Eric's body. As the crowd grew, she was pushed outside of it. She gazed up at the loft window, wondering what happened to Shelly. She prayed that Shelly had lived. Then, tears still streaming down her face, Raven turned and ran the short distance to her apartment. She locked the door, went into the bathroom, and turned on the water in the bathtub. Raven then stripped down and wiped off as much of the eyeliner that had run down her cheeks with the tears as she could before stepping into the warm water. She took a deep breath, grabbed the razor off the edge of the tub, and slit her wrists. She then used what little strength she had left to grasp the gun she had laid next to the tub, place it to her head, and pull the trigger, her last words echoing through the room. "I love you, Eric Draven. Always and forever."


	2. Chapter 2

One Year Later

A year had passed since the murders of Eric Draven and Shelly Webster. Both were buried in the local cemetery. Needless to say they were buried next to each other. Raven Derrick, however, was presumed missing. No one had bothered with searching for her. Her body still lay in the freezing water that filled her bathtub. The note she wrote before her suicide was still laying on the counter. The razor and gun were laying in the bottom of the tub. Both were rusted. The only thing that was different was the raven perched on the side of the tub. It tilted its head to the side and looked at her, cawing softly. When Raven gave no response, it worked its way along the side of the tub til it was parallel to her head. It ran its beak across her forehead and pecked at the porcelain lining of the tub. A few moments later, Raven's eyes shot open and she rose out of the water, gasping for breath. She looked around the room, taking in her surroundings, then placed her hands on the edge of the tub, using them to support her as she stood. However, she hadn't had time to stand before images of her suicide flashed through her head. She basically re-enacted the last night she spent alive from the time she entered the door, til the time she pulled that fateful trigger. When the living memory was finally over, Raven collapsed back into the tub, sending water all over the tile floor. She shook her head and got back up, hesitantly placing her hands back on the edge of the tub. When it was found to be "safe," she stepped out of the now below freezing water she died in and onto the cold, white tiles of the bathroom floor. She slowly made her way to her bedroom, wanting to find something warm to put on. Raven rummaged through her closet and found a pair of jeans, and a black T-shirt that was a few sizes too big. Not bothering putting on any eyeliner, she walked out the door and headed toward the cemetery, wanting to pay her final respects to her best friend.

She wandered through the cemetery aimlessly, trying to find Eric's grave. She thought she was alone, until she heard someone walking through the cemetery a few aisles across from her. She ducked behind a large headstone quicker than she could blink, not wanting to be seen. She muffled her breathing and strained her ears, trying to figure out who the late night visitor was. Staying low to the ground, Raven followed the footsteps jumping from headstone to headstone, hoping slightly that it was a friend of Eric's or Shelly's coming to visit the grave. When the footsteps came to a sudden stop, Raven was in between two headstones. She quickly rolled to her front and prayed to God she wasn't seen. Just to be safe, or be an idiot, which one she wasn't sure, Raven leaned over the front of the headstone to see who was there. It was Sarah, a young girl, about 13, whom she used to help Shelly take care of when she wasn't working. Sarah saw her. Raven's eyes widened and she gasped, then clapped her hand over her mouth and ducked back behind the headstone. 'Stupid, STUPID! Good move Raven, get yourself in deep shit. Smart. Genius!' She mentally scolded herself for a few minutes. Then she heard Sarah softly call her name. It was more of a question than anything else, as if she wasn't sure if she had seen Raven or not. Raven took a deep breath, stood up, and said, "Yes Sarah?" as if Sarah had known she was there all along. "Oh my God," Sarah breathed. "Where the hell have you been for the past year huh?" she said seconds afterward, trying not to sound as shocked as she was.

"I, uh . . . I . . . I locked myself in my apartment after Eric died. I was there. I saw it happen. He landed right in front of me. He was my best friend, you know, and it really screwed me up. But, I'm back now, and was actually coming to pay my final respects, but, I guess I'll take you home, if you don't care. It's getting late and you shouldn't be out here. It's dangerous."

"Nah, I'll be fine. Thanks anyway though. Sorry about what happened, and I guess I'll se ya round. Bye!" With that, Sarah threw up her hood and walked off in the rain. It had started pouring a few seconds before. "No. . . . no you won't," Raven muttered to herself before sighing and turning to go. Then she noticed a crow land on the grave in front of her. She leaned over to see who's grave it was, and fell over backward, nearly knocking her head on the headstone behind her. It was Eric's. She then watched as the crow pecked at the concrete slab. The confusion on her face turned to shock, then to horror as the ground in front of the grave split open and Eric rose from his grave, then fell to his knees and cried out, seemingly in pain. Raven ducked behind a headstone to avoid being seen. A minute later, Eric pulled himself up on a tree branch, then was led off into the night by the crow. The raven from Raven's apartment landed on Raven's shoulder and cawed softly. Raven could only guess what Eric had been brought back for. She then turned and ran back to her apartment, hoping her assumption was right and forming a plan, the raven following close behind.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** Sorry! I forgot to put it in the first 2 chapters. I do not ownThe Crow, or any of it's characters. Ido, however,own Raven Derrick.

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Raven entered her apartment and tore through it, running into her bedroom, closing and locking the door behind her. She flung herself down on her bed, and let a few tears fall as a rush of memories came to her. She remembered the times before Shelly, when Eric would come over just to hang out and talk about any random thoughts that came to mind. She remembered the nights that Eric would stay with her. Raven would snuggle up against his chest, never feeling more content, and Eric would have his arms wrapped around her. Then she remembered the times after Shelly entered the picture. The only times Eric ever came around was when something had happened between him and Shelly that he felt bad about, and then he'd leave as soon as he was done talking to Raven. That was when Raven slowly became more and more depressed. Then the suicidal bit came in. It all seemed to get worse the longer the relationship went on. The night the engagement had been announced, Eric and Shelly had come to Raven's apartment, and Shelly took Raven aside and asked her, flat out, if she had any feelings for Eric. Raven answered Shelly honestly, and promised that she'd keep her distance. Raven then gave them both some congratulations, and asked politely if they'd mind leaving. After they left, she tried to kill herself, but couldn't do it. The string of memories went on for a few minutes, then ended as abruptly as it started. She wiped away her tears and rummaged through her closet again. She pulled out her black tube top; tight, black, leather pants; black, knee-length, leather boots; and a black, floor-length, hooded velvet cloak. She threw them all on, then ran back into the bathroom. She pulled out the canister of white face powder she used when she was a member of Eric's band, The Hangman's Joke. She was a guitar player and back-up singer, but quit because the time she spent alone with Eric was driving her insane. Of course, she didn't share that with Eric. She said she got really homesick on tours and couldn't stay with the band anymore. She rubbed the make up on, then whipped out her trusty stick of black eyeliner. She coated the lash lines of her eyes, then drew lines coming down from the corners of her eyes, only on the outside, as if a stream of tears was falling from them. Then she coated and lined her lips with it, taking it out across her face at the corners there as well. To finish it off, Raven tied her hair back and threw up her hood. Giving herself a once-over in the mirror, she deemed herself ready to face the world and left the apartment, heading toward Eric's loft, planning on following behind him wherever he went.

Raven ran from rooftop to rooftop, hood drawn, cloak flowing behind her. When she saw Eric stop a few feet in front of her, she stopped as well and quietly moved behind the smokestack of the building to avoid being seen. She saw through the raven's eyes for a mere second and glimpsed Tin Tin, initial killer of both Eric and Shelly, stalking up the alley below. She smirked when the haunting sound of Eric's laughter filled her ears. Raven knew that laugh all too well. It meant Eric was up to something. She came out from behind the smokestack and perched herself on the ledge of the building, watching as Eric threw Tin Tin from one side of the alley to the other. She smiled knowingly and made her way to the edge of the building to her right and jumped off, landing easily on her feet in the shadows. She watched the conversation that ensued. "Murderer!" Eric roared, pinning Tin Tin to the wall in front of him.

"What you talkin' bout man? I didn't murder anybody. I don't even know you! What the hell you want?"

"I want you to tell me a story. A man and a woman in a loft."

"You're out of your mind man."

"Listen! I'm sure you'll remember. You killed them a year ago. On Halloween."

"Halloween. Yeah, yeah I remember. Some dude, some bh whatever man."

Eric cut him off by slapping him across the face. Raven silently cheered him on. She was growing pissed with Tin Tin and soon would have intervened.

"Her name was Shelly," Eric growled. " You cut her. You raped her."

"Shelly. Yeah, I shanked her pink ass and she loved it!" Tin Tin responded, throwing Eric to the ground and kicking him around a bit. "Murder, Murder!" he yelled. "Let me tell you a little something about murder. It's fun, and it's easy. And you gon learn all about it." He shook his coat off and pulled two knives from his belt, twirling them around a bit. "Like you to meet two buddies of mine. We never miss." He then turned to face Eric and hurled a knife at him, Eric easily knocking it aside. It landed at Raven's feet. She picked it up and fiddled with it as Tin Tin hurled yet another knife at Eric. "Try harder," Eric said. "Try again." Raven, having waited long enough, threw the knife at Tin Tin. It landed directly in his heart. She stepped out of the shadows as Tin Tin slumped to the ground, dead. She nodded at Eric, then ran off into the shadows, her raven following close behind.


	4. Chapter 4

Raven rested in an alleyway, catching her breath. She looked up as Eric's crow soared over her head, perching on Gideon's Pawn Shop. She grinned and thought, 'This should be fun.' She stood and made her way across the street, watching as Eric rapped on the door. When he received no answer, he pulled the gate open and rapped again, busting the glass door and stepping inside. As the crow fluttered to his shoulder, he proceeded to quote 'The Raven.' "Suddenly, I heard a tapping, as of someone gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door. You heard me rapping, right?"

"You're trespassing," Gideon said. "And you owe me a new door!"

Eric ignored him and said, "I'm looking for something in an engagement ring. Gold."

Gideon cut him off. "You're looking for a coroner, st for brains." A shot fired, tearing through Eric's chest. The bullet wound healed instantaneously. Gideon panicked. "Oh st on me, st on me, st on me!" he cried as Eric flung him across the room. He slammed against a rack of items behind the counter. Eric came over and hung upside down beside Gideon. "Mr. Gideon," he said, "you're not paying attention." Eric then whacked him upside the head and drove a knife through his hand. "I repeat, a gold engagement ring, yes?"

Gideon nodded.

"It was pawned here a year ago, by a customer of yours named Tin Tin. He confided in me before he ran out of breath." Eric grinned evilly, then began randomly searching through racks and drawers trying to find the rings. "Am I getting warmer? Don't you know this game?" he cried. Gideon finally told Eric where the rings were, and Raven smirked. 'It's about time,' she thought to herself. Eric sat down on the floor and began searching through the little box for the ring he wanted. "No. No. No. No. No." Then, he stopped tossing rings aside and closed his eyes. "Shelly," he whispered. He had found Shelly's engagement ring. Raven blinked back the tears that were building up and hurried away from the building, heading toward Eric's loft. She knew she shouldn't be there, but she also knew the memories would comfort her. She ran up the steps with catlike agility and slowly entered the loft. When the wave of memories she expected didn't hit her, she moved more freely through the place. She sighed and curled up in the armchair before the fireplace. As soon as she got comfortable, a memory came. She relived a night when she had stayed over, before Shelly came into the picture of course, and Eric had pinned her in the very chair she was sitting in and tickled her til she cried. She remembered later that night when she had fallen asleep in his lap watching Top Gun. "So many memories," she murmured. "So many happy times. All of them shattered before my eyes." She continued to sit curled in the chair til she decided that sitting and reminiscing was getting her nowhere. She stood and went to the large circular window at the front of the room. Looking out of it, she shuddered. The place below the loft was the place where she saw her best friend fall to his death. She shook her head and looked up as Midnight, the raven, perched on the glass in front of her and cawed. She glimpsed Eric heading toward The Pit, a local nightclub, through Midnight's eyes. "Oh joy. I get to stalk him some more. Let's go." She grinned evilly and leapt from the window, landing gracefully on her feet, and ran off to find Eric.

She wandered through a back alley til she saw Eric perched on the fire escape. She jumped behind a dumpster and placed her hand over her heart, catching her breath. She slid down the side and buried her face in her hands, thinking. She hated hiding from him like this, but it was too soon to reveal her identity to him. She heard Eric climb into the apartment nearest him and she took off, clambering up the fire escape herself and perching where Eric once sat. She watched him stalk to the center of the room and circle his head across the light bulb hanging above him to come down and glare at Funboy. He then strutted forward and struck a chord on his guitar, scaring the life out of Funboy. "Holy st, don't do that man! You nearly gave me a fing heart attack!" he cried. Eric ignored him and pulled up a chair, placing his palm over the front of the gun Funboy had just aimed at him. "Take your shot, Funboy. Ya got me dead bang!"

"You are seriously fed up! I mean, have you looked in a mirror? You need professional help!" Then, he pulled the trigger, a bullet tearing through Eric's hand. Raven was angry, then slowly smirked as she realized that Eric's cries of pain were faked. As Eric stared at Funboy through the wound in his hand, the hole disappeared and any blood around the wound was gone. "Jesus Christ!" Funboy cried, astonished and freaked out. "Jesus Christ," Eric echoed. "Stop me if you've heard this one. Jesus Christ walks into hotel," he was stopped by a bullet being fired through his shoulder. "Ow. He hands the innkeeper three nails and said." He was stopped again by another bullet tearing through his side. "Don't you ever fing die?" Funboy asked before Eric finished his joke. "Can you put me up for the night?" Eric grabs the gun from Funboy and shoots him through the thigh. Darla, thoroughly terrified, runs into the bathroom and closes the door. Funboy, however, falls to the bed and says, "Look what you've done to my sheets!" before passing out. Eric drags Funboy's body into the bathroom and tosses it in the tub, turning the shower on before facing Darla. He comes toward her and easily wrenches the knife she was wielding from her grasp, tossing it aside as he leads her toward the mirror. "Mother is the name of God on the lips and hearts of all children. Morphine is bad for you," he says, squeezing the liquid from her arm. "Your daughter is out there on the streets waiting for you. Go," he says, sending her from the room. Then, he turns to Funboy. He was starting to come around. Raven was standing in the middle of the room inspecting the syringes filled with morphine. She jumped into the shadows when Eric entered the room. But, rather than remaining silent, she chose to speak to him. "Eric," she called, disguising her voice. "Use his drugs against him. Turn them against him and kill him." She then made for the window, wanting to leave. "Wait!" Eric called after her. "Why are you helping me?"

Raven hesitated then answered. "My best friend was killed a year ago by the very men you hunt. I too seek revenge." Then, she disappeared into the night.


	5. Chapter 5

Raven prowled the streets, searching for T-Bird and Skank. They were the only two left in her and Eric's hit list, and she intended to kill them before the night was up. She found them walking down a sidewalk, discussing Tin Tin's death and Funboy's whereabouts. When T-Bird sent Skank into a store for "smokes and road beers," Raven came up behind him and help a gun to his head. "Pop quiz!" she said menacingly. "An insane woman comes up behind you and tells you to take her to the docks or die. What do you do?"

"You want me to drive?" he responded all to quickly.

"Good answer." Raven said, throwing herself into the front seat. Unbeknownst to them, Eric was sprawled across the back seat, awaiting T-Bird's return. When T-Bird hesitated to start the car, Raven and Eric held guns to his head and said, "Drive!" He took off at about 90 M.P.H., leaving Skank behind. After a high-speed chase involving T-Bird, a couple cops, and Skank, they reached the docks. While Raven duct-taped T-Bird to his seat, Eric searched the explosives in the trunk. T-Bird was rambling incoherently until Eric came back around to the front of the car and he recognized him. "I know you. I knew I knew you. But you ain't you. You can't be you we put you through the window. There ain't no comin' back. This is the really real world, there ain't no comin' back. There ain't no comin' back! There ain't. . . Abashed the devil stood, and felt how awful goodness is! Abashed. . ." He continued to ramble as Raven stepped out of the car. Eric lit an explosive, tossed it into T-Bird's lap, and set the car into drive. They watched and waved as it took off down the dock, then set about making and lighting the symbol of a crow/raven on the concrete in front of the docks. After the car and T-Bird exploded and landed in the river, Raven nodded at Eric and took off for her apartment.

About halfway to her apartment, Raven realized she'd left her cloak sprawled across Eric's chair. "Crap it!" she moaned. "I've been going around all night without it, and Eric's probably recognized me, and. . . aw crap it!" She slumped down against the side of a building, buried her face in her hands, and shook with silent tears. She sat there for so long she ended up falling asleep. Luckily, no one noticed she was there and she was left alone.

Raven awoke the next night feeling slightly better than she had the night before. She headed back to Eric's loft to retrieve her cloak, and hoped he wasn't there. When she arrived, it wasn't Eric she found, it was Sarah. Yet again, Sarah's eyes widened, and Raven enveloped her in a hug. Raven pulled away and looked at Sarah with an almost stern expression. "Sarah," she said softly. "You've got to promise me that if you see Eric, you won't tell him I'm here."

"Why not? I'm sure he'd be happy to see you."

"That's something I've got to do on my own. Can you keep a secret?"

"Yeah!" Sarah said, perking up a bit. Raven then launched into a short but detailed explanation of her suicide, resurrection, and following of Eric the night before, Sarah clinging to every word she said. "So," Raven concluded, "I think I've been brought back to tell Eric how I feel, regardless of what I promised Shelly. That's why I've got to face him alone. What do you think?" Sarah's apparent expression of a fish out of water answered her question. Raven laughed and stood, gathering her cloak and stepping up to the window. "Now, I'm going to go stalk Eric some more. Remember what I told you," she told Sarah before jumping out the window, much like she did the night before.

Raven and Eric were sitting about 3 feet away from each other on the fire escape of Top Dollar's building. Eric was waiting for the opportune moment to strike, Raven the moment to follow him. After Top Dollar gave a rather impressive speech about Devil's Night and anarchy, the crow on Eric's shoulder flew down to land in the middle of the table. "How the hell did that thing get in here?" Top Dollar asked no one in particular. "Gentlemen!" Eric called, stepping from the shadows. Raven followed him, but stopped at the shadow's edge. Skank began to freak out, for he knew he was going to be the next to die. As he struggled to escape Grange's grasp, Eric flipped over a chair and propelled himself onto the table, landing cross-legged atop it. Top Dollar smirked and said, "So you're him, huh. The Avenger. The Killer of Killers. Like the look. Not too sure about the face though.

Eric pointed to Skank and said, "I just want him."

"Well you can't have him," Top Dollar retorted.

"I see you have made your decision," he said, rising. "Now let's see you enforce it."

Top Dollar rolled his eyes. "Aw this is already boring the shit outta me, kill him!" As a hail of bullets flew at Eric, Raven smirked and sang 'I know something you don't know!' repeatedly in her head. Raven stepped forward as Eric fell to the floor. He winked at her before diving under the table. She smiled and grabbed a gun, shot the person nearest her in the head, then aimed her gun at Top Dollar, preparing to shoot him if he didn't cooperate. "Who do you think you are?" he asked, sneering.

"No one you want pissed off," she said back, glaring. She noticed Eric killing someone out of the corner of her eye. Then, the battle started. Top Dollar and his cohorts, Myca and Grange, ran off as soon as the first shot was fired. Raven started to go after them, but Eric called her back, saying he'd need her help. She aimed her gun and started shooting. Bullets were flying, enemies were dying, and Raven was having the time of her life. Unfortunately, sometime during the process of wiping out Top Dollar's gang, her hood fell and Eric, getting his first good glimpse of her, immediately recognized her. Once the battle was over, Raven reached up and felt her hair rather than the velvet of her hood and she flew into the shadows while Eric dealt with Skank. He grabbed him and pulled him out from under the table. "Today's not a good day to be a bad guy, huh Skank?" he asked mockingly.

"I ain't Skank. That's Skank right there. Skank's dead!" he replied, trying in vain to worm his way out of trouble.

"That's right," Eric said before tossing Skank out the window. Then, he turned to the shadows of the building, searching for Raven. "Raven," he called. "I know you're there. Why are you hiding from me?"

She drew a long, shaky breath and whispered, "Because I'm afraid you'll leave again, just like you did when you met Shelly." She stepped from the shadows, her cloak in a heap on the floor, and gazed softly at him, a few tears running down her cheeks. "I missed you," she whispered even softer than before, then ran to him and threw her arms around his neck. She buried her face in the crook of his neck and cried some more. "God I missed you so much." She hoped he believed she was never dead. Luckily, he didn't suspect a thing. "What have you been doing for the past year?" he asked quietly.

"Same stuff I always did," she lied after a moments silence. She looked up at him and smiled, wiping away her remaining tears, which also resulted in the smudging of her eyeliner. They both laughed. The happy moment was interrupted, however, when about 7 police officers came bursting into the room, shouting "Freeze!" Eric and Raven looked at each other, then made for the roof. They ran as fast as humanly possible, and then jumped from the roof. Raven landed with cat-like grace, then turned and, laughing, helped Eric up from the pile of garbage he landed in. She rolled her eyes, then grabbed his hand and took off running again. They hadn't gotten very far when Albrecht screeched to a stop beside them and opened the side door, telling them to get in. They hurled themselves into the car, Raven in the back, Eric up front. They drove for a few minutes, then screeched to a stop after nearly colliding with another car. Albrecht heaved a sigh, then looked around the car, finding it empty. Once the car had stopped, Eric and Raven had fled the scene, disappearing onto the shadows of the night.

Eric and Raven slowly entered the cemetery, exhausted from running but prepared for whatever else happened. They looked at each other and smiled upon finding Sarah asleep by Shelly's grave. Raven wandered off while Eric sent Sarah home. She stood in the shadows and watched him give Sarah the engagement ring that once belonged to Shelly. As Sarah left, Raven came up behind Eric and began to speak to him, but Midnight fluttering onto her shoulder cut her off., scaring her a bit. "Holy crap! You scared me you little booger!" she said, flicking the bird's beak gently. Midnight cawed and flew off. "So, when'd you get the bird?" Eric asked.

"Oh, Midnight? She came to me after. . . . .after I finally got over your death." She mentally slapped herself yet again. She'd almost blown her cover. Eric looked at her oddly but didn't say anything. He turned back to Shelly's grave, placing his hand on it. Raven knew he'd want some alone time, so she walked off hurriedly, wanting to catch up with Sarah. She came around the corner in time to see Sarah get carried into the church by Grange, Top Dollar's right-hand man. She ran back around to the cemetery and called to Eric. "Hey! We've got trouble. Come on, Sarah's gonna need help," she said, before running off into the church.


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's Note**: Firstly, I'd like to thank the people who have reviewed the story. I appreciate that; it lets me know I'm not just posting this for my own pleasure. Secondly, I'd like to say that it may be awhile before the next update. I haven't finished writing the end yet, and I'd like to save it to the original document before posting it here. When I'll have it finished isunknown to me, so don't send me akajillion messages/e-mails asking when I'll update. If you'd like to help me get some ideas, which would be INCREDIBLY helpful, feel free to do so. Kudos and cookies to the first few people who send me ideas!

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Raven came into the church, bursting the doors open and letting them slam against the walls. She was pissed. She was followed closely by Eric. Top Dollar stepped out of the shadows as Midnight and Eric's crow landed on the pews to the left and right of them. "Quick impression for ya," Top Dollar said, making a bird with his hands. "Caw, caw, BANG, FK, I'm dead!" Neither Eric or Raven laughed. "Give us the girl, and we'll let you walk out of here," Eric said. Top Dollar rubbed his chin. "You'll just have to let me think about that," he said, turning his back to them. A minute passed, and Top Dollar turned, saying "Aw, fk it," before shooting Eric in the shoulder. Now, this wouldn't have been bad, if Grange hadn't shot down Eric's crow not too long after they entered the church. Eric placed his fingers to the wound, laughed in an attempt to fake out Top Dollar, then fell to the floor saying, "Aw fk." Top Dollar stepped over to Eric, leaned down, and wiped some of the blood off Eric's shoulder. "For a ghost you bleed just fine," he said, before kicking him around a bit. After having his fun with Eric, he said, "Looks like our life has undergone quite a significant change in the last few minutes there." Raven had finally heard and seen enough. She screamed in anger and pounced on Top Dollar, knocking him to the floor. She then punched him in the nose. She felt a sickening crunch and smirked as the bone broke. She stood and gave him a few swift kicks in the side before going and helping Eric up. Just as Grange aimed his gun at the crow, who was writhing around the floor, Albrecht came bursting in, shooting madly at Top Dollar, who had since pulled himself off the floor, and Grange. As the gunfight progressed, Raven led Eric off to the side, getting him out of harm's way. She then ran over and attacked Top Dollar again, this time only pulling his gun from him before running off after Myca to help Sarah. She scaled the stairs with ease and came to a stop in front of Myca, who had just finished tying Sarah to the banister. She aimed the gun at Myca's heart and pulled the trigger. Myca fell to the side, crashing through the rail, her body landing in the aisle of the church. She then untied Sarah and sent her out of the church, telling her to use the back door. As the shooting ceased, Top Dollar had scaled the stairs, keeping a steady aim on Raven with his spare gun he had hidden. Albrecht went over to help Eric.

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**Another Author's Note**: Yes, I know this was short. Don't hurt me. As I said, I've run out of ideas. If you message me, I'll let you know where I've gotten so far and we'll see what we can come up with from there. 


	7. Chapter 7

**Author's Note**: Hey guys! I'm really, REALLY, **REALLY** sorry about the wait. My muse for this story took a rather long, unexpected vacation, and I couldn't think of anything for a very long time. I only just finished it a few minutes ago. I want to thank the few reviewers I have, and say that it's greatly appreciated to recieve notes from y'all. Very encouraging. Again, I'm really sorry, and I hope you enjoy the final chapter.

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Raven stood to her full height, looking Top Dollar in the eye. "Your fight is now with me," she said coldly. "If you go after Sarah, I swear to God I'll kill you before you can touch her." She glared at him, awaiting his next move. Upon turning her back to Top Dollar, she was grabbed around the neck and drug out to the roof. Rather than calling for help as she usually would have done, she kept silent, not giving Top Dollar the satisfaction of knowing she was scared. However, when she saw Eric emerge from the stairwell into the pouring rain, Raven struggled to break free. "Eric! Just go! I can handle him!" she cried out. A choked cry escaped her as she felt the cold steel blade of a pocketknife being buried into her side. She had time only to whip her head around and begin to speak before being unceremoniously tossed to the side, left to dangle from the side of the church, unseen by anyone else in the area. She struggled for a moment, regaining her balance and attempting to pull the knife from her side. She slipped, and threw herself back at the rickety beam she'd caught onto with all her weight, deciding it would be best to leave the knife until she was able to be back on solid ground. For now, she hung almost helplessly from the roof, only able to try, in vain, not to panic and pray that Eric was alright as she listened to the clanging and screaming going on above her. She gasped as both men slid down the roof, using the adrenaline being pumped through her system to fling herself upward and remain unseen. Eric thought her dead, and she aimed to keep it that way for as long as possible. However, she couldn't contain herself as Top Dollar snuck up on Eric, and she screamed, "Behind you!" hoping to God he turned around or moved, anything to get himself out of harm's way. Unfortunately, her warning wasn't quick enough, and she was forced to watch as Eric was harmed. She gritted her teeth and glared at Top Dollar, trying not to finish the job of destroying the worm herself. It was Eric's task, she must stay out of it. Eric turned on him, sending the wave of obviously painful memories and visions that had been haunting him the past two days to Top Dollar, the emotion contained in them killing him. She smirked as he fell to his death, almost laughing as he was impaled on a gargoyle. She scrambled to her feet, moving as quickly as she could to Eric's side as he slumped against the roof.

"Never did do things the easy way," he said with a laugh, trying to hide his obvious pain.

"Well, at least we know you'll never do anything half-assed," Raven responded, tossing his arm over her shoulders and helping him to his feet. They returned inside, heading down to the main floor and back out to the cemetery. Alberecht had left after Eric followed Raven to the roof. She helped him down to the ground, propping him up against Shelly's grave. She sat beside him, barely having time to figure up an answer to the question she knew was coming before it was asked.

"How in the hell did you survive that?" Eric asked between breaths, looking up at her questioningly. Raven sighed softly, avoiding his gaze while she answered.

"I … I was there, the night you died. I watched you fall. Your body landed about six inches away from me. I couldn't handle it. Especially not after losing you to Shelly. I hardly saw you as it was, and then, the next thing I know, you're dead. I couldn't take it. I killed myself. I guess I couldn't rest without you knowing."

There was a long silence after her speech. Raven couldn't bring herself to look at him, too afraid of what she'd see. Eventually, she couldn't stand the awkwardness of the situation and looked up, only to see Shelly approaching from the opposite side of the grave. She looked back down at Eric, her vision clouding with tears as she realized what was going on. She leaned down, pressing her lips against his cheek and whispering, "I love you," before standing and turning her back on her friends, wrapping her arms around herself and slowly walking off into the night. She remained in the city 'til Sarah was grown, watching and guiding the girl until she could care for herself. Then, she returned to Eric's loft, blocking up any possible entrances so she could be left in peace. She curled up in her favorite armchair by the fire, reveling in a few final memories before dying once more.


End file.
